Cougars look to keep rolling as Stanford comes to Provo

BYU vs. Portland State Week One Photo by Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo

The BYU Cougars are riding high after a spectacular Week One performance against Portland State, and they’re looking to keep the momentum rolling as they host a familiar foe: the Stanford Cardinal, a team with strong ties to the Bachmeier brothers.

Stanford has been dealing with plenty of turbulence heading into this season. Following the firing of their head coach amid bullying accusations, the Cardinal lost several key names to the transfer portal, including signee Nusi Taumoepeau, and, of course, brothers Bear and Tiger Bachmeier. Add in a rough 23-20 Week Zero loss to Hawaii, and it hasn’t exactly been the smoothest start for the program. 

But even still, BYU head coach Kilani Sitake isn’t overlooking Stanford. In a weekly press conference yesterday, he praised the Cardinal for their resilience.

“They have a really good coaching staff, good talent on their team, I mean all you have to do is look at the guys that we got from there, Bear and Tiger came from there,” Sitake said. “I think they were put in a really difficult situation as a program, and I think Andrew Luck and Frank Reich are doing everything they can to make it right. We know we’re going to get their best shot, we just need to make sure we give them our best shoot too.”

Sitake’s respect is clear, but ESPN’s analytics tell a different story. According to their matchup predictor, BYU is a heavy favorite with an 89.2% chance to win.

For Cougar fans, Saturday is another chance to see what true freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier is made of. Against Portland State, he delivered a near-flawless state line in just one half of play, but it didn’t come without some early hiccups. Still, Bear showed poise and maturity by quickly bouncing back, settling in, and proving why BYU trusted him to lead this offense.

Now, with Week One jitters behind him and a matchup against his former school of choice on deck, Bachmeier has the perfect opportunity to make another statement under the bright lights of LaVell Edwards Stadium.

The Cougars will once again take their home field with kickoff against the Stanford Cardinal set for 8:15 p.m. MT on ESPN.

BYU football, BYU vs Stanford, BYU Cougars, Stanford Cardinal, Bear Bachmeier, BYU quarterback, BYU game preview, LaVell Edwards Stadium, Kalani Sitake, BYU football schedule, ESPN college football, BYU vs Stanford kickoff, BYU Cougars football news